The job description for a Cardinals defensive end in 2013 will be different than it was the previous two seasons.

Just how different is a matter of opinion and perspective.

“Night and day,” said Darnell Dockett, the starter on the left side.

“This defense is better for any D-lineman, just because it allows us to be more aggressive,” said Calais Campbell, the starter on the right side.

“It’s not a dramatic difference,” said Todd Bowles, the new defensive coordinator.

Under Bowles, the 3-4 will be the Cardinals’ base defense, as it was the previous two seasons under Ray Horton, now the Cleveland Browns’ coordinator.

There are differences, however, and the biggest one might be in how defensive ends play. For the past two years, the ends were asked to “two-gap” — stymie the offensive lineman trying to block them and control the gaps on each side.

The defense was designed for linebackers to be the stars. That’s the philosophy of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 3-4 scheme, which Horton brought to Arizona.

The system Bowles uses calls for more one-gapping. Campbell and Dockett will be asked more often to penetrate, which means attacking the edge of an offensive lineman.

This change thrilled Dockett. In Horton’s system, he felt like he had been stripped of his best attributes: quickness and power.

Campbell adapted better and blossomed into one of the NFL’s better defensive ends. But like Dockett, Campbell is excited about the change.

“They want us to create penetration,” Campbell said. “They want us to shove (offensive linemen) back 2 yards, 3 yards deep and be able to shed blocks quicker and made tackles in the backfield, which I think Dockett and myself would be very, very good at. You know, we’re very athletic.”

Bowles knows that, which is one reason for the change.

“They’re two of our best players on defense, so they kind of set the tempo,” Bowles said.

Both Bowles and coach Bruce Arians cautioned that Campbell and Dockett won’t be allowed to just freelance and play without responsibilities. They will have to be able to play the run while still penetrating.

To make that work, a team needs athletic ends who can react quickly while on their way to the quarterback.

“We’re very, very athletic up front,” said Campbell, including linemen David Carter and Frostee Rucker in that group. “We’re able to get into the backfield and re-direct and make tackles for loss.”

Dockett said he and Campbell are the “most underrated tandem” in the league. “It’s good because we’re so under the limelight right now. It’s perfect.”

The change comes with risk, because the Cardinals defense improved in most significant categories under Horton, including yards and points allowed.

Campbell had no problem making the transition into Horton’s system. In the past two years, he had 141/2 sacks and knocked down 18 passes. He became a better run defender.

Dockett, meanwhile, became less influential. He had just 11/2 sacks last year, his fewest since 2005, and for the first time in his career he didn’t force or recover a fumble.

He also was hampered by a hamstring injury last year. Dockett turns 32 on Monday, and he’s played a lot of football, missing just two games in nine years. It’s fair to wonder if we’re starting to see the erosion of skills.

Dockett is confident the change in scheme will prove that he’s as good as ever.

“This right here allows me to do what I’ve been doing when I was a dominant player at the position,” he said after Tuesday’s voluntary practice. “This right here allows guys to have to really block me and Calais. This right here allows you to be a playmaker. It allows you to be very dominant up front and be a physical force and not take on two or three people, just sitting pretty much like a hitting bag.

“This right here allows us to be a hammer and let other people be the nail.”

Note

Hawkins (5 feet 8 and 180 pounds) played collegiately at Southern and had 31 catches for 467 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior in 2012. He played at Southern under current Cardinals running-backs coach Stump Mitchell,who was the school’s head coach from 2010-12.

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